Filing blank and tab



April 15 1924.

w. J. BULLOCK FILING BLANK AND TAB 1923 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 26,

C/IRO IYO.

Ewe/1101' Af il- 15 1924.

W.,J. BULLOCK mm mm mm Fina April. as 192a 2 shun-shut -z MIBRBS aoumlv no. nnounr Harem use": 3 cnsmrs Patented Apr. 115, 1924.

WILLIAM J. BULLOCK, OF'AYDEN, NORTH CAROLINA.

FILING BLANK mm TAB.

Application filed April 26, 1918.

1 '0 all whom it may concem:

Be itknown that I, lVILLIAM J. BULLOCK, a citizen of the United States, and residin at Ayden, in the county of Pitt and State of North Carolina, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Filing.

Blanks and Tabs. of a specification.

My invention, as will be more fully understood from the description and explanation hereinafter given, relates to a new and useful improvement in tabs for cards and the like generally employed invertical filing systems, and, while the invention is more particularly adapted for application to vertical filing systems now in use for many purposes, it is also capable of being used where sheets or cards'are provided with projecting tabs whereby the sheets are adapted to be turned manually. The invention contemplates still further a novel form of card or sheet combining a tabbed line card provided with spaces appropriately designated to receive requisite data or indicia with a ledger card provided with which the following is spaces appropriately designated to receivev data relative to an account.

An object of the invention is to provide a rojecting manipulating tab for record or filing blanks of the kind referred to, which shall be simple, cheap to manufacture, and attractive in a earance.

A further 0 ect resides in the provision of a tab integral with the bod of the card or blank, andhaving a shoul ered portion or manipulating extension adjacent to the identification bearing portion of the tab, whereby the card or blank may be mani ulated by means of the shouldered portion without bending, breaking, or marrlng the indicia-bearing portion of the tab.

A still further object of the invention is the combination in a single card, sheet or the like, of a tabbed line card and ledger card.

To accomplish the objects stated and others that will appear as the description proceeds, I have devised the novel struc' ture hereinafter described, and my inven' .tion consists in the construction, arrange .ment, and character of thediiferent parts of such structure, the essential elements of which are recited in the appended claims.

ln'the accompanying drawing in which the same reference characters are employed fabric backing piece, etc, but

Serial No. 634,805.

to indicate the same or like parts in all the figures,

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showin a series of cards or sheets provided with tabs according to this invention.

Fig. 2 is a face view showing the tab as appliedto a combined line and ledger card;

Fig. 3 is a face view showing a series of cards or sheets provided with tabs according to this invention arranged in the drawer K of a filing cabinet;

Fig. 4 is a face view of a modified construction of the combined line and ledger card showing a tab provided with a manipulating extension on only one side thereof;

Figs. 5 and 6 show further modifications of the tab construction; and

Fig. 7 shows a further modification of the combined line and ledger card of Fi 4.

It is well known that the tabs 0 guide andline cards and the like of the kind formed integral with the body of the card and without a reinforcing element are objectionable in that frequent fingering of the tabs bend them at the edge of the body portion of the card, with the result that the'tabs soon break oif. become marred, or curl over so that the indiciathereon cannot be readily seen, etc. To avoid such objections it has been proposed to reinforce tabs of guide cards such as those to which n1 invention relates with a facing of thin celluloid, or a while such tabs are strong, durable, and attractive,

they are subject to the disadvantage of being relatively expensive to manufacture.

My invention contemplates the provision I of a tab 'which will largely obviate the objections noted and the indicia-bearing portion of which it will be unnecessary to touch in manipulating the cards. As illustrated in Figure 2 of the drawing, my improved tab consists in forming integrally with the desired edge of a card A a tab designated 7 generally by reference character 13. The

tab B is formed with an 'imlicia portion of a height and width suiiicient to easily receive proper identification characters Projecting from either or both sides of the indicia portion 6 is a manipulating extension or finger portion 6. The upper edge of this extension is substantially parallel to I the upper edge of the card A, and the extension is shouldered at b for a purpose that will later become apparent. In praccards manipulating extension of the tab about one third the helght of the indicia portion, andthe length of the manipulating portion will vary from approximately the same width to twice the width of the indicia portion, since I do not limit myself to exactdimensions as variations may be made depending on the material, quality, and thickness of the card A. It will be observed from Figures l and 3 that cards embodying this invention are primarily adapted to be used in a series, the tab on the first card being located on the left end of the card, that on the second card a little to theright sufficient to expose the identification on the second tab, and so on, successively, until the tabs' approach the right hand endof the card, or until the series under the assumed index is exhausted, whereupon another series will be started with the tabagain on the left.

When it is desired to manipulate the cards the extension 6', Figures 1 and 2, is engaged by the index finger H, or the nail thereof, and the card or cards pu led forward, whereupon the card wanted may be removed bgrasping the extension 1) between the thumb and indexfinger. It will thus be seen that the indicia bearing ortion of the tab need never be touched, w ereby soiling, bending and breaking of the same is avoided. Especial attention is invited to the fact that the mani ulating extensions of the tabs overlap t e main indicia portions of the adjacent cards at the front and rear respectively, so'that when the nail of the index finger is inserted behindthe left hand shoulder 6' of an extension and drawn forward 'or is pressed against the right hand shoulder and the cards in front of the card having said shoulder are allowed to fall forward the overlapping extensions of the cards will be reinforced by the main tab portion of a card beyond in each case, thus in efiect providing extensions of tw -ply thickness, which, together with the fa that the extensions are relatively low prevents bending of the extensions, thereh nsurin longer use e for them. As the ii of ta shown igs. 1 and 2 include a anipulatin ex: tension projecting from both ,sides 0 the indieia portion, it will be obvious that the may be mani ulated by the left hand, in which case the left extension '6' will be engaged'as shown at H in Fig. 1, or the cards may be manipulated with a finger of the right hand as shown at H in Fi 3.

In the modified form shown in l igure 3 the tab includes a manipulating portion or extension 6 at each side of the indicia portion and this manipulating extension is about one and one-half times the width of the indicia portion or is of a length suflicient to extend along beside and slightly beyond the indicia portionof the second card and beside partsof the upstanding portions of other cards when ina series with 5, the manipulating extension 6 on the ri ht hand side of the indicia portion is somew at longer than that shown in F igsil and 2 to 0 tab construction shown in Fig. 4 is.

the tabs In the modified form of tab shown in Fig.

effect an increase in the overlap ing of the extensions. Ina series of car s provided with tabs according to this form of the invention, the extension on the tab of the first card will extend along beside substantially the entire upstanding portion of the second card and beside parts of the upstanding portions of other cards beyond extension on the tab onthe third card, whereby several thicknesses of material are provided to withstand the manipulating action of the finger.

In the further modification shown in F i 6, the manipulating portions 6 to the lei and right are of substantially the same form as the indicia bearing portion, only of less height. It is obvious that \vhen car(ls having this form of tab are arranged as shown in Fig. 1 the identification on the indiciabearing portion will always be exposed, and the manipulating portion will be easily aocessible to the finger in manipulating the cards.

I will next proceed with a description of my improved line and ledger card. While this'card is primarily adapted for use in provision of blanks and ruling. It will be observed from Figs. 2 and i of the drawing that my improved card is divided into two sections, A and The top section A is similar to a card called a line card now in gcr eralnse, on which is kept the dates and policy numbers in pencil writing so that the same may be easily erased. This card will be posted to show the insurance in force for a given arty at all times should that information e desired. The b0 tom section C of the front side of the card quite similar to the conventional ledgei'i. card, except for a few changes and additional lines to make it especially applicable to fire insurance records. I propose to use the back of the card as a continuation of the ledger section C, and to this end the back of the card will be ruled in the same manner as the ledger ruling on the front side of the card,

racemes So that the record may be continued on the reverse side of the card. The ruling on aither section may be varied to give the desired information, such as by changing the regular double-entry ruling with a debit section at the left and a credit section at the right, as shown at g in the ledger card portion C in Fig. 2 to the modified form of single entry card shown in Fig. 4. The ledger card may be disposed below the line card as shown in' Figs. 2 and 4, or to either side thereof as shown at g in Fig. 7. I have found it advisable in practice to provide my I combined line and ledger card with a manipulating tab, and the improved tab above described is admirably adapted for the purpose in that the absence of any reinforcing member facilitates the printing and ruling of the card, and for reasons which will appear from the next following paragraph.

As shown in Fig. 1 of the drawing, T purpose to have ten cards in each series, and number the tabs of'each series of my consolidated line and ledger cards from zero to nine, the first tab being near the left hand side of the card, the second a little further to the right, and so on. However, the number of cards comprising a series may be varied as indicated in Fig. 3, in which case the numbering may be varied in any well-known manner. I propose to use the cards with the regular index guides, the index card, designated by reference letter D in the drawing, to contain numbered spaces for the names of the customers under said index, and the cards under a given index to be originally blank, and numbered to correspond with the numbers on the index card I). In the front will be kept the cards of unpaid policies, which for convenience I will term the active set, and be hind this set will be a set of guides for cards of the paid accounts which I term the inactive set. When a policy is unpaid, the record card will be found in the active set; when paid, it will be placed in the inactive set. For example, if. John Doe should desire to pay his account you would look in the front section on the D guide, where you would find John Doe 3 which would indicate that this particular persons card is numbered 3. The card numbered 3 would be removed from the D guide, and. after balancing his account, the card would be dropped behind the D guide in the inactive section, where it would reanain until wanted again. If the card were combined in one is a great improvement over the systems now generally used in that time is saved in posting, as only one card has to be found, a credit can be more expeditiously entered as the entire record pertaining to a policy or customer will be found in'one ace a on one car an 1 nd (1, d less e m accordance with the statutes, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A filing card comprising a body por-' tion and an upstanding tab on said body portion, said tab comprising an indicia portion and laterally extending fingering portions on each side thereof of substantially less height than the indicia portion, the fingering portions being throughout their length attached to the sheet and terminating in abrupt shoulders, the length and height of the fingering portions being such that fingering of the same will not bend the indiciabportion, substantially as set forth.

2. device of the kind described, comprising a record sheet, an upstandin tab forme integral with said sheet, sai tab comprising an indicia portion for receiving an identification character, and laterally ex tending fingering portions on each side thereof of substantially less height than the indicia portion, the fingering portions being throughout their length integral with the sheet and terminating in abrupt shoulders, the length and height of the fingering portions being such that fingering of the same will not bend the indicia portion.

3. A record card having an n standin tab formed integral with said car said ta comprising an indicia portion for receiving an identification character, and fingering portions extending from each side and of less height than the indieia portion, the arrangement being such that when the ca'rd is placed with other similar cards in a series with the tabs progressively offset its fingering portions will be reinforced b the tabs of one or more adjacent cards, su stantially as set forth; I I v 4. A record card havingan upstanding tab formed integral withsaid card, said tab comprising an indicia portion for receiving an identification character, and fin erin portions of substantially equal lengt an too regular height extending from each side of the indicia portion, the arrangement being such that when the card isnsed with other similar cards in' a series with the tabs progressively offset, its fingering portions will each be reinforced by the tab of an adjacent ,card, substantially as set forth.

tion in order to expose the indicia portions and fingering portions of the tabs, the arrangement being such that the fingering portions Will each be reinforced by the tab of an adjacent card, substantially as set forth.

" 6. In a record card having spaces appropriately designated to receive indicia iden-' tifying an insurance policy and additional spaces appropriately designated to receive accounting indicia, an upstanding tab comprising an intermediate indicia portion and fingering portions of asubstantially less height, said fingering portions being attached to the body of the card throughout their length and of substantially regular height, the length and height of the fingering portions being such that when the card is placed with other similar cards in a serieswith the tabs progressively oifset its fingering portions will each be reinforced b the tab of an adjacent card and will not end the indicia portion, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I aifix my signature. V

WILLIAM J. BU LOCK. 

